Indicator for use in card games



.Fun 24, 1924.

J. P. STEVENS Filed April 23 Patented June 24, 1924, f I j 4 JOSIAH PERCIVAL STEVENS, OF ATLANTA, GEORGIA.

INDICATOR FOR USE IN CARD Games.

To all whom it mayconcern: I

Be it known that I, JOSIAH P Sravuns,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Atlanta, in the county of Fulton andcState of Georgia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Indicators for Use in Card Games; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The present invention relates to improvements in indicators for use particularly in connection with card games and card parties to designatetbe dealer as much dissension arises from the failure to remember who dealt the cards last and it is for the purpose of avoiding the contentions ar1sing from this failure and to settle finally as to who the next dealer shall be thatthe pres ent invention is proposed.

The invention consists in providing a com pact and attractive construction designed to be operated by the pencil used by the party keeping the score of the game, it being another object of the invention to make a desirable disposition of the pencil during the time each hand is being played as pencils,

particularly round pencils cause much annoyance because of their tendency to roll off the card table and they are generally placed against the edge of the pad on which the score iskept but this is unsatisfactory.

Other objects of the invention are to provide a device simple in construction and operation for pointing to the next dealer and for providing a socket in which to receive the pencil, the act of moving the pencil into the socket causing the operation of the index or pointer.

With the foregoing and other objects in View, the invention will be more fully de scribed hereinafter, and will bemore particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto.

In the drawings, wherein like symbols re-- fer to like or corresponding parts throughout the several views,

Figure 1 is a top planview ofthe indicatorconstructed according to the present invention.

I Figure 2 is a vertical section therethrough r1 Application filed April 23, 1923. Serial No. 634,198. 1

with the parts shown in an initial position.

Figure 3 is a similar view showing a penoil as received in the socket and the a subsequent position.

Figure 4 is a top plan view with the cover removed and the parts inthe position shown in Figure 2, and

Figure 5 is a similar View with the parts in the position shown in Figure 3.

parts in Referring more particularly to the drawings,1 designates a base plate which is rear wall extending outward of the lugs 2 and 3 and the front wall lying outward of a lug 8 also struck up from the base and being threaded to receive a locking screw 9 which passes through the front wall of the cover ,7. Suitable numbers are provided upon the upper face of the cover 7 as shown in Figure l to designate the various hands in the card game and as an example I have illustrated four such numbers for use 111 connection with a four-handed game in which the numhere are placed at angular distances of 90 degrees or in other words the cover is marked off into quadrants and over the upper face thereof is adapted'to move the pointer or indeX'10 mounted upon a vertically disposed shaft 11' joui nalled in appropriate hearings in the base plate and in a supporting bracket 12 erected thereon and secured as by the fastenings 13shown in Figures 4 and 5, This bracket serves to hold the mechanism by which the pointeror index 10 is moved an angular distance of degrees upon the com pletion of each hand of thegaine and by the introductionof a pencilrepresented 1n dotted lines at 14 into a socket 15 carried at the rear central portion of the base plate 1. I

In the socket is a longitudinal vertical. slot 16 adjacent a similar slot 17 in the rear wall I of the casing, the slots permitting the rear arm 18 of the bell crank lever or inclined plane to project into the socket. Thebell crank lever is fulcrumed' as indicated at 19 to a part of the bracket12 and the arm 18 projects downwardly and diagonally therefrom so as to assume an inclined position within the socket 15. The forward arm of the bell crank lever projects vertically downward and is pivoted to a pawl 21 that. extends forward beneath a ratchet disc 22 made fast to the pointer shaft 11.

The disc 22 is provided with downwardly extending teeth 28 to cooperate with the outer end of the pawl 21, which has an inclined upper face 2 to cause the pawl to be deflected downwardly in moving back to the initial position after each actuation. The flat spring 25 bearing and "sliding upon the base plate 1 is coupled .to the pawl 21 and acts to yieldably urge the pawl upwardly against the bottom face of the ratchet disc. v A leaf spring 26 is secured at one end of the stop 27 upon the base plate'and has its other end engaged with the pawl or the bell or ank. lever and acts to normally urge the parts to an initial position. a

The disc 22 as shown in Figures 4. and 5 is provided with notches 28 :to receive the spring tooth 29 carried by the bracket 12 for the purpose of yieldably restraining the disc against rotation until positively actuated by the pawl and for further avoiding any casual .or accidental movement of the disc during the receding movement of the pawl.

In the use of the device the indicator -is placed beside the pad on which the score is kept and the pencil used to mark down the score is inserted after each deal in theholder or socket 15 and it isremoved after each hand is played in order to set the score down. In other words the pencil reposes inthe socket indicated in Figure 3 during the playing of'each hand and it must be removed after the playing of each hand to set down the score so that the pointer or index 10 is moved througha quarter of a circle after each deal and consequently this pointer moves around the numbered cover portion and points to the next dealer upon re-insertion of the pencil.

The pencil in entering the socket strikes the arm 18 a glancing blow and causes the bell crank lever or inclined'plane to press forward pushing the pawl against a tooth 23'of the disc and forcing the disc through an angular "distance of 90 degrees carrying the shaft 11 and index 10 therewith. When the pencil is removedthe spring 26 pushes back the bell crank lever or inclined plane and also the pawlto the position shown in 1 Figures 2 and 4: and the pawl 21 will ride downwardly on encountering the next subsequent tooth 23, which movement will be ermitted by thespring 25. r

It will thus be found that the device will reliably indicate the next dealer and will provide a suitable receptacle for the pencil while each'handis being played -The casing or cover is of course not neces sary and this may be dispensed with if desired but it'protects the mechanism and avoids the accumulation of dust and other foreign matter upon the moving parts of the device.

It is obvious that .various changes and modifications may be made in the details of construction and design of the above specifically described embodiment of this invention without departing from the spirit there- J of,such changes and modifications being re .stricted only bythe scope of the following claims.

lVhat is claimed is 1. A device for indicating dealers at cards and the likecomprising a base, a socket for receiving a pencil at the back of the base,

and standing substantially vertically, "an ii verted cup-shaped casing fitted removably over the base and-lying adjacent thesocket, said socket and base having registering slots, a bell-crank-lever pivoted within said casing to swing in asubstantial ly vertical plane and composed of front and rear rigid arms diverging downwardly from the pivot point, the rear rigid arm playing through the slots in said casing and socket and adapted to normally project into the socket, a. pawl pivi Z oted to the front rigid arm and adapted to swing in a substantially vertical plane and having a raised toothat its outer end, and an inclined top surface sloping from the tooth downwardly and rearwardly, a long flat spring associated with said pawl for yieldably holding the pawl elevated, said spring adapted to slide over said base plate, ashaft journaled in said casing, an index thereon, a disc fixed to the shaft and having downwardly extending teeth to cooperate with the tooth on the pawl, and means to hold the disc yieldably from rotation.

2. An indicator comprising ai base, a casing thereon, a shaft journaled through the casing, an index on the shaft, a toothed disc on the shaft, a yieldable paw-l cooperating with the teeth on the disc, a bell-crank lever pivoted at its intermediate point within the casing and having its forward arm coupled to said pawl, said bell-crank lever having a rear rigid arm, the arms diverging downwardly from the pivot point, and a substantially upright socket fora pencil adjacent said casing and receiving the rear rigid'arm of the bell-crank lever, the pivot'point of the lever being withoutfthe socket.

3. An indicator comprisinga base plate, an inverted cup-shaped casing mounted removably on'said base, a socket for a pencil supported by the base outside but adjacent the casing, said casing and socket having alining slots, a bracket secured to said base and having a shaft bearing, a shaft journaled in said bearing and projecting through operating With the index, a bell-crank lever ried by the forward arm, and a toothed disc having arms forming an acute angle, said on the shaft engaged rotatably on the forarms being both rigid and projecting doWn- Ward movement of said pawl, and means 10 Wards, the rear rigid arm playing through to restore the pawl, and bell-crank to in- 5 the slots in the casing and socket, said bellitial position.

crank lever being pivoted to said bracket and atits top portion, a yieldable pawl car- JOSIAH PERCIVAL STEVENS. 

